Which is the most restful sleeping position?......(2)

The advice given by specialist in this field of kinesiology is that the pillows should be of a thickness that keeps the head and neck in one line, with the pillow filling the gap between the tip of the shoulder and the neck. In sleeping on the side the pillow can be flattened.

It is worth spending some time in finding out how you can get the best from the time you spend in bed–nearly a third of a lifetime –for relaxation and sleep can, coupled with the right attitude of mind, ensure that you are constantly renewing those parts if the body that suffer most from the wear and tear of everyday life.

a billingsgate knows exactly how it wants it

Which is the most restful sleeping position?......(1)

Some lying position place unnecessary burdens on muscles and can cause tensions, strain and pain. Lying in bad normally requires the minimum expenditure of energy because the pull of gravity on various parts of the baby is counter-balanced by the support given by the mattress to nearly all segments of the body. If, however, the springs of the end are soft and the mattress sags then the weak intervertebral muscles and ligaments have to work overtime. Eventually they become weaker still, stretch, and back-ache a firm bed, often with bed boards, is used.

Another important point about your sleeping posture is the position of the pillow. If you have two or three thick pillows arranged so that the head is placed in a position with neck muscles stretched then the tension induced in them prevents from resting.

Techniques of positive relaxation

Just as the mind affects the body, so, conversely the body affects the mind. If we relax physically, our minds relax too.

There is always a certain amount of tension in muscles, a form of contraction that persists to a variable degree even in rest. This contraction that persists is most evident in the postural muscles which maintain the body upright, and the number of fibers working at any one time is governed by a reflex mechanism which operates whenever the postural muscles are stretched or the body balance distributed. Obviously the force of gravity affects muscles more in standing than in sitting and least of all in lying. Consequently, if we are to achieve maximum relaxation of muscle tension we must lie down and support all the major segments of the body so that the muscles controlling them are not stretched. Some relaxed lying postures are described below. Choose whichever is most comfortable for you own body. They are all of roughly equal merit.

Good sex – god health.....(2)

Sexual dysfunction, fear of impotency, can make life a misery for men and women. It can lead to loss of confidence, anxiety, and loss of ambition, depression, alcoholism and the chronic ill-health that is likely to go with all these condition. Sexual incompatibility is a major cause of marriage breaking up – especially in the divorce-prone age of 39 plus. And, it is not surprising if, after such a traumatic experience, there comes another phase of emotional difficulties, further anxiety, deeper depression and sickness.

Good sex – god health.....(1)

That sexual fitness and satisfaction are closely connected with general wellbeing is generally agreed. Good sex is biologically desirable, say specialist in many fields who have found that disabilities often stem from an unsatisfactory sex life. Men around the 40-year-old mark are particularly vulnerable.

Take for example men and women who suffer pain down the neck and arm, ‘pins and needles’ in their little finger, sometimes attributed to a ‘trapped nerve’, and have to wear a surgical collar as a splint. The pain is real, often excruciating and notoriously unpredictable. It comes and goes without any degenerative chances in the vertebrae showing on X-ray plates. Suddenly, though, the pain may go and the symptoms disappear. The cure ? Often this ‘miraculous’ relief follows a congenial marriage or a robust love affair. And the collar is never worn again.

Short Circuit to Fitness....(2)

The task for each exercise session is then set at half the maximum repetitions archived, and, ideally, two laps of the circuit should be done at this rate. But there is nothing to be lost in starting gradually and only doing one lap for the first week. For those who are already fairly fit the task can be set at two-thirds of maximum performance and three laps completed.

But always start at well below your assessed capabilities. It you begin training at a comfortable rate you will attain your true level soon enough – mark the date and count the days.

Short Circuit to Fitness....(1)

‘What is circuit training? ’ As the name implies, it involves going round a circuit or series of exercises one after the other. You do a set number of repetitions of each one until you come to the first exercise again and then, if you are feeling fit enough, you do a second lap.

The task, or set number of repetitions for each exercise, is decided by a test, when you first start training, at which you try to repeat the exercise as many times as possible before fatigue makes you falter. This is time to stop and record your score your score.

Getting the best from your sleep

Of course, this makes nonsense of Benjamin Franklin’s well-known jingle, ’Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise’. And it perhaps explains why the amount of sleep needed varies so much from one individual to another. British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, for example, is reported to go to bed at 2am and get up again at 6am. However, the important point is to get to know how much sleep you personally need. And then you must have it in full or tell-tale signs will appear–irritability, impaired judgment, and muscular weariness.

Getting the best from your sleep

Deep sleep is the great restoraer, ‘chief nourishes in life’s feast’, writes Shakespeare. And it is the most important healing agent of all. For centuries we have been led to believe that it smoothest away all lines of tension and has a benign effect on both body and mind. But the important thing to remember is that sleep comes in varying depths. You may appear to sleep all night but only for a part of that time-usually the first few ahours – will you be in a deep sleep. This conclusion has been drawn from studies of brain wave patterns taken when subjects were asleep. Many doctors believe that many of the deep sleep stage. Some people, for example, can go to bed late, drop into a deep sleep right away and still get up fresher than the unfortunate ones who go to bed early and lie for hours without dropping into a deep sleep.

Are you taking a calculated risk?...(contd)

Most of us are ambitious. We fix our sights on a target and set out to overcome all difficulties by energetic effort, but there is a limit to the strain the body can stand. There comes a time when we must pause and take stock of our commitments, of the way we are wearing ourselves out. We know that we should balance work with play, make time for exercise and relaxation, but because time is short, ‘tomorrow will do’ is often the attitude adopted. Tomorrow may be too late.

Are you taking a calculated risk?

In some men and women there is an impulse that makes them want to climb mountains, or to drive a car faster than anyone on earth or to be the first person on another planet. It is a spirit of adventure. There is an equally potent driving force which appears as ambition in others who want to reach the top in a profession, business or creative art.

Neither of these forces can be quenched by advice to ‘take it easy’. But to the mountaineer, racing motorist or astronaut the dangers are evident, risks can be calculated and physical preparation is part of the planning for success. The ambitious must plan too. Though tne risks for them are not as exciting nor as evident, they are just as real, and ignoring them does not remove them.

How much weight do you need to lose?...(contd)

There is no crash diet for works! Furthermore, the quick weight loss diets are dangerous. A daily 1,000 calorie diet is normally recommended as the safe low-Calorie level for weight reducing. Avoid diets claiming an initial weight loss of ten for pounds a week for the first two weeks. You will feel dreadful and look awful for the fortnight of deprivation. These diets are usually very low in Calories from carbohydrates and high in proteins. Some of these diets involve eating more eggs than is good for health – they are rich in cholesterol, a cause of heart disease. No more than three eggs a week is recommended.

How much weight do you need to lose?

You don’t need to look fat to be overweight. Excess poundage can creep on insidiously with the passing years and can become a threat to your health. So you could be overweight without realizing it. Shedding this excess in your prime would bring a level of well-being and vitality which you have long forgotten, or have never previously enjoyed.

1. Is it harder for you now to squeeze into clothes you cast off years ago?

2. Does your flesh ripple and joggle as you bounce up and down. Look in a full length mirror and be prepared for a shock.

3. Pinch the flesh on the back of your upper arm mid-way between your shoulder and elbow. If it’s more than an inch think you’re far too fat.

Healthy Food Diet

DriDrink plenty. Dehydrating is nonsense. Moderate alcohol. The body uses alcohol as a source of energy. One pint of beer has the same calorific value as two eggs. Skim fat from soups. This is best done by storing overnight in the fridge when the hardened fat is more easily taken off. Eat less red meat. Take skin, with its layer of fat, from chicken. Always eat breakfast. If you do not will be more tempted to overeat later in the day. Take halibut or cod liver oil tablets every others day if you feel that you are not having enough of the fat soluble vitamins from your fat free diet. Weigh yourself weekly at the same time in the early morning without clothes. Make a note of your weight on a card kept near the scales. Most people weight more late at night than they do just before breakfast.

Enjoy your Exercise...(contd..)

Enjoyment is particularly important when applied to exercise schedules. Even Olympic coaches recognize this. Gone today are the rigorously boring routines and regimentation that put so many restrictions on athletes under training.

We don’t have to punish the body with grueling routines for everyday fitness. There is no need to sweat to a state of near-exhaustion. It is self-defeating to grit your teeth and haul your way relentlessly through a ritual that becomes a burden to you.

Enjoyable exercise is the maxim of the new breed of fitness enthusiasts who have learnt to make beneficial physical activity an enjoyable part of their lives.

Enjoy your Exercise

‘Firm up and feel great’, write the exercise enthusiasts before knocking off for a break in front of the television. And the doctors are just as adamant: ‘Continued use delays the ageing process. Use makes the organ – the heart, the bones, even the sexual organ’.

What is needed is an enjoyable session of exercise two or three times a week for your heart, lungs and general circulatory system. But note, the key word is enjoyable. If it not enjoyable you are not likely to persevere with it and, the more enjoyable it is the more benefit you are likely to derive from it.

Get the Lean Look....(contd)

The food that once used to feed the active muscles is no longer burnt in vigorous effort on the sports field or tennis court. It is Stored between the wasting muscle fibers as useless fat. Eating habits are hard to break especially when, during the more prosperous years of the late 20s and early 30s, a little extra money is available for gratifying the pleasures of eating rich meals. And though such extra treats may only add two or three pounds to body weight in one year, it can at that easily creep up to an unhealthy stone in five years.